7 Ways to Increase Your Productivity at Home

1. Create a Dedicated Work Space

Dividing work life and personal life is not a new concept, but when you’re working from home it is critical.  By setting aside a place where you only do work, you can help you keep the two separate.

It can be as simple as splitting your desk into two distinct spaces, or as big as having a separate home office that you only use for work. The space should be comfortable and inspiring.

When you aren’t working, be sure to take your leisure activities away from your dedicated work space.

2.     Stick to your Schedule

The freedom of working from home can be double sided, you may be tempted to work too little or too much.

Set a schedule for when you want to work (don’t forget to take time for lunch and brain breaks) and try your best to stick to it. You may have to adjust your schedule multiple times before you find what works best for you!

Give yourself deadlines for finishing a project or task. After completion, give yourself a high-five and cross that sucker off your to-do list! If you had trouble meeting your deadline, take some time to reassess what went well and what could use improvement.

3. Get Out!

Some of us are more prone to cabin fever than others, but everybody needs to get out of the house sometime. Whether you prefer to take a walk, eat lunch in the sun, or just spend a few minutes relaxing on your porch, getting outside and away from your normal environment will help keep you fresh and productive.

We have a habit of taking regular walks when the weather is feeling cooperative and are well-known for our favorite local coffee spots.

4. Manage Distractions

Working from home provides you with an entirely different set of daily distractions than you might experience in the workplace. Between the lure of personal interests, the neighbor’s kids playing outside your window, or even the dream/dread of chores, you still have to be able to focus and get your work done.

As we mentioned above, a dedicated work space can help by separating yourself from where you might normally play or do personal work. Combine this with a daily/weekly To-Do list to help you stay on top of all your important tasks!

If you find yourself distracted by housework or personal matters, carve out some dedicated time to them every week (or even daily), so you know when they’ll get done and you can stay focused on your work when you need to.

Here are a few applications on the market that can help:

• https://getcoldturkey.com/ Blocks websites and applications by user rules/times.
• http://www.stayfocusd.com/ Can be found in the google chrome extensions, blocks access to time-eating websites.
• https://www.toodledo.com/ Online To-Do lists, outlining, and task tracking.

5. Make it Special

This is where we tell you to have a little fun while you work, and really, we mean it! If you have a favorite color, take your notes in it! Does matching stationary make you smile? Then pick out a nice set for your work space and use them! Put up a picture that you like, add some decorations to your desk, dust off that lava lamp you got in high school!

Around here we love purple pens, wonder woman sticky notes, and slinkys.  And no we’re not kidding!

6. Communication is Key

Whether you’re working by yourself and interacting with clients or working remotely from your colleagues, make sure that you are communicating clearly and when needed. A poorly written request for information can really stress the receiver out!

While the level of formality you need to keep will be dependent on your situation, taking time to re-read and re-organize an email can make a huge difference.

Some of our prefered applications:

• https://zoom.us/

• https://slack.com/

• https://gsuite.google.com/products/gmail/

7.     Plan Personal Time

When you work and live in the same place you can sometimes overwhelm yourself. Compare your expectations of yourself working from home to working in an office; are you being fair as your own manager?

Make sure you are taking time to do things that you enjoy outside and away from work, even if you’re not taking time off or going on vacation. We want you to be happy and healthy while you pursue your dreams, not just busy!

 Disclaimer This article presents general information and is not intended to be tax or legal advice.  Refer to IRS publications and discuss possible tax deductions with your tax preparer.